We had a lovely Mother’s Day brunch here yesterday, with J.’s homemade caramel sauce, espresso ice cream with ribbons of dark chocolate and caramel, and Ina Garten’s Outrageous Brownies for dessert. Hello, decadence. There was watermelon on the dessert table, too, but I sure didn’t see too many pieces of the fruit eaten!
A new spring schedule means we’re not home until after 6 more weeknights than not, which is new for us. I used to find time to cook dinner in the morning, but now I am finding myself using those bits of time to volunteer at our local SPCA instead. And hey, I usually get a warmer reception from the dogs I’m walking than I do from my kids receiving a home-cooked dinner.
We made a great family meal tonight: salmon, baby potatoes, and asparagus on the grill; plus Baked Ziti for the non-fish eaters. And, because we were celebrating a birthday, there were homemade brownies and Mint Chip Ice Cream for dessert.
J. did at least half of that cooking, but today’s puttering in the kitchen plus a batch of Chocolate Chip Banana Bread muffins make me feel somewhat primed for a week of real dinners after a long hiatus.
This past week we became foster parents for the first time. That is, fosters of two shepherd mix puppies that are about 3 months old. I have been volunteering at the SPCA of Westchester since the beginning of the year, and I love it. I’m a dog walker, and I also help the dogs learn more “adoptable” behavior (like, not lunging at the front of their cage and barking their heads off when someone comes close) using clicker training. Taking in two foster pups was the next step, and these dogs — named Monkey (the darker one) and Pouch by my boys — were fantastic sweetie pies.
Because they are not yet housebroken, we had them gated into our entry/dining room, which has a tile floor. This also meant there were two safety gates separating my kitchen from the rest of the house, with eager-to-play puppies in between. So, the dogs became yet another reason to make a quick batch of pasta for dinner rather than having a meal plan and cooking something more well-rounded.
They are definitely my cutest excuse for not cooking yet. The pups were reluctantly returned to the SPCA Thursday morning, and they found new homes the same day. We miss them, but I’m trying to teach the boys that it’s OK for an experience to have been both happy (having them) and sad (returning them) at the same time. We did a good deed fostering them, and we do hope to foster more dogs in the future.
Yesterday, I made a fresh batch of chicken soup, and tonight I roasted Brussels sprouts and cauliflower. We may actually be on our way back to a varied diet. I’ve made a promise to myself to create a meal plan for this coming week. If you want to help me out, let me know what you’ve been cooking — I could use some inspiration.
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two school-aged boys and husband. Feeding my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more about me and CITK, and keep in touch:
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Moroccan Chicken Tajine: I recently had a chicken tajine dish at Fig & Olive in Scarsdale, and wanted to recreate something similar at home. This is an Ina Garten recipe, and she never fails me.
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two school-aged boys and husband. Feeding my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more 
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